COMPANY NEWS; NEWFIELD PLANS TO SELL SOME ASSETS AFTER BUYING EEX

Newfield Exploration, an oil and gas explorer that agreed on Wednesday to buy a rival, the EEX Corporation, plans to sell $70 million in offshore assets after the acquisition is completed, its chief executive said. Newfield will pay $640 million in stock and assumed debt for EEX, giving it access to deep-water fields in the Gulf of Mexico. The assets to be sold, which include a floating oil and natural gas production platform and 53 miles of underwater pipelines, were valued by EEX last year at $70 million, Newfield's chief executive, David A. Trice, said. Newfield will pay 0.05703 share for each EEX share, or a total of 7.1 million shares, and assume $360 million in debt.